Tape dispenser



V. J. SHERIDAN TAPE DISPENSER July 10, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March2, 1953 1N V EN TOR. qncen @/m dan July lo, 1956 V. J. SHERIDAN2,754,023

TAPE DISPENSER Filed March 2, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 TAPE DISPENSERVincent I. Sheridan, Chicago, Ill.

Application March 2, 1953, Serial No. 339,828

10 Claims. (Cl. 216-54) This invention relates to adhesive tapedispensers, and more particularly to dispensers for applying tabs,labels, etc., to lengths of tape prior to severance of the latter from aroll by means of a cutting blade.

Lengths of adhesive tape with tabs or labels adhesively united theretohave various uses. For example, the tabs or labels may be printed withdierent types of information, such as price, weight, quality,ingredients, etc., of goods and applied to packages containing the goodsby means of adhesive tape. In the wrapping and sealing of packages, itis common practice to use lengths of pressure-sensitive tape, and thepresent invention contemplates the provision of tabs applied to the endsof lengths of tape, serving to facilitate subsequent removal of the tapefrom the package.

An object of the present invention resides in the provision of adispenser adapted to apply a tab, label, or the like, to a length ofadhesive tape.

Another object of the invention resides in the provision of a dispenseradapted to house a stack of tabs, labels, or the like, in position to besuccessively applied to lengths of adhesive tape.

A further object of the invention resides in the provision of adispenser embodying means to support a roll of adhesive tape and tosever lengths of tape from the roll, the dispenser also embodying meansfor automatically applying a tab or label to the adhesively coated sideof the tape prior to severance of a length of tape from the roll.

Another object of the invention resides in the provision of a tapedispenser housing a stack of tabs or labels adjacent a tape cuttingblade, and means to urge the uppermost tab or label into adhesiveengagement with the tape prior to severance of a length of tape with atab or label thereon from a roll of tape.

The invention further contemplates the provision of a tape dispenser inwhich the tabs, labels or the like may be of various sizes regardless ofthe width of the tape.

The invention embodies other novel features, details of construction andarrangement of parts which are hereinafter set forth in thespecification and claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings,wherein:

Fig. l is a perspective view illustrating a tape dispenser embodyingfeatures of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a modified form ofthe invention.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary perspective View illustrating another modiliedform of the invention.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective View illustrating another modifiedform of the invention.

Figs. 5 to 9 are detail plan views illustrating lengths of tape havingflat labels, tabs or the like adhesively united thereto.

Referring now to the drawings for a better understanding of theinvention and more particularly to Figs. 1 and 5 therein, the tapsdispenser is shown as comprising a base 2 and spaced side walls 4 4formed with coaxial trunnions 6 6 for insertion into an axial openingpro- States Patent vided in a roll of adhesive tape 8 which may, ifdesired, be a transparent pressure-sensitive adhesive tape commonlyemployed in wrapping packages, etc.

At one end of the dispenser, the upper edges of the side walls 4- 4 arejoined to adjacent ends of a cutting plate 10 which provides atape-supporting platform in Xed relation to the axis of rotation of theroll of tape 8 and is formed with an elongated opening 12 and a serratedcutting edge 14. The base 2, side walls 4 4 and cutting plate 10 deiinea chamber 16 to receive a stack of tabs, labels or the like to besuccessively applied to lengths of the adhesive tape 8. The tabs,labels, tags, or the like, may be formed from any suitable exible liatsheet material, such as paper, plastic, cloth, metal, etc., and arehereinafter referred to in the specification and claims as tags 18. Agroup of tags 18 are arranged in stacked relation within the tag chamber16, the stack of tags being constantly urged upwardly against theunderside of the cutting plate 1t) by resilient means, such as one ormore helical compression springs 20, to dispose the uppermost tag inposition to be adhesively united to the adhesive tape and thereafterwithdrawn from the chamber 16 through the opening 12.. As illustrated inFig. l, the length of the opening 12 is less than the length of thecutting plate 10 to provide abutment shoulders 22 22 at opposite ends ofthe plate for engagement by the stack of tags 1S.

In the use of the dispensing device, the adhesive tape 8 lies across theupper surface of the cutting plate 10 in adhesive engagement therewithand with the uppermost tag 18 in the chamber 16 and is mechanically ormanually lifted from the cutting plate to withdraw the affixed tagthrough the opening 12. A desired length of tape is then drawn from theroll and cut therefrom by again engaging the tape against the uppersurface of the cutting plate 10 and the serrated cutting edge 14, tothus provide a length of tape with a tag thereon, as illustrated in Fig.5 in the drawings, to be applied to a package or other article.

It will be noted that each tag is bowed slightly during its removal fromthe chamber 16 through the opening to permit its ends to move past theabutment shoulders 22-22. In this form of the invention the ends of thetag are shown as projecting beyond the side edges of the tape.

Fig. 2 in the drawings illustrates a modiiied form of the invention inwhich the tape dispenser is provided with a cutting plate 26 formed withan elongated opening 27 and a serrated cutting edge 28. In this form ofthe invention, the cutting plate is formed with tongues 3i) overlyingthe tags 18 to limit upward movement of the stack of tags responsive tothe force exerted by a pair of compression springs 32 32 disposed withinthe tag chamber 16 between the base 2 and the stack of tags. In thisform of the invention each tag is bowed trans- Versely to its lengthduring its withdrawal from the tag chamber 16 through the opening 27during operation of the dispenser in applying lengths of tapewith tagsthereon to packages, articles, etc. It will also he noted that the endsof the tags 18 are flush with the side edges of the tape 8,asillustrated in Fig. 6 in the drawings. This form of the invention isotherwise similar to the form heretofore described and illustrated inFig. l in the drawings.

Fig. 3 illustrates another modied form of the invention in which a tapedispenser is provided with a cutting plate 34 similar to the cuttingplate illustrated in Fig. 2, except that the plate 34 is provided with arelatively wide shelf 36 formed with a serrated cutting edge 37 to severlengths of tape with tags thereon from a roll, as shown in Figs. 7 and8.

Fig. 4 illustrates another modified form of the invention in which thetape dispenser is provided with a cutting plate 38 formed with arelatively small tag discharge opening 40 spaced between the side edgesof the plate and having abutment shoulders i2-42 to engage the ends ofthe tags 18 prior to removal upwardly through the opening. The cuttingplate is also provided with a shelf 4d projecting forwardly from theopening 46 and having a serrated cutting edge 46 to sever lengths oftape from the roll. In this form of the invention, the edges of the tags18 are spaced from the side and end edges of the tape, as illustrated inFig. 9.

In the several forms of the invention herein shown and described, itwill be noted that the uppermost tag in a stack of tags within thedispenser is pressed into adhesive engagement with the tape by the forceexerted by the compression springs prior to severance of a length oftape from the roll, and that the tags may be of various shapes and sizesand arranged in diterent positions longitudinally and transversely oftheir respective lengths of tape for application to packages, articles,etc., to visually convey information relating thereto or to provide atab to facilitate removal of a length of tape from a package or toprevent adhesion of parts of the tape to the package or combination ofpackages to which it is to be applied.

While this invention has been shown in several forms, it is obvious tothose skilled in the art that it is not so limited but is susceptible ofvarious changes and moditications without departing from the spirit andscope of the claimed invention.

I claim as my invention:

1. A device for applying tags to lengths of adhesive tape comprising ahousing having spaced side walls, means on said side walls to rotatablysupport a roll of adhesive tape, a cutter plate to which said tape willadhere, said plate having secured in fixed position on said side walls,said plate having a tag discharge opening and a serrated cutting edgespaced from said opening, abutment means on said plate adjacent saidopening to normally engage opposite side edges of the uppermost tag in astack of tags arranged between said side walls, and pressure applyingmeans normally urging the stack of tags upwardly against said abutmentmeans whereby the uppermost tag in the stack will be engaged by andadhesively united to that portion of the tape positioned on the cuttingplate above said discharge opening.

2. A device according to claim 1 in which said abutment means aredisposed adjacent opposite side edges of the tape when the latter ispositioned upon the cutting plate to engage opposite ends of tags to bowthe tags ransversely of the tape.

3. A device according to claim 1 in which said abutment means are formedon the cutting plate and disposed to engage opposite side edges of tagswhereby the tags wid be bowed longitudinally of the tape during movementthereof through said opening.

4. A device according to claim 1 in which said cutting plate is providedwith a relatively wide shelf extending between said cutting edge andsaid opening whereby said tags are spaced from the ends of a length oftape severed from the roll of tape.

5. A tape dispenser for applying tags to lengths of adhesive tape,comprising top, bottom and side walls detining a tag chamber to receivea stack of tags, said top wall having a tag discharge opening andabutment shoulders arranged to engage opposite edges of the uppermosttag in the stack, means provided on said side walls to rotatably supporta roll of tape with one end thereof coplanar with and adhering'to saidtop Wall and extending over said opening, pressure applying meansnormally urging the stack of tags upwardly against said abutmentshoulders to cause the uppermost tag in the stack to become adhesivelyunited to that portion of the tape covering said opening, and a cuttingedge provided adjacent the remote edge of said top wall from said rollsupporting means whereby lengths of tape with tags adhesively unitedthereto between the ends thereof may be severed from the roll of tape.

6. A dispenser according to claim 5 in which said abutment shoulders aredisposed to bow the tags longitudinally of the tape.

7. A dispenser according to claim 5 in which said abutment shoulders aredisposed to bow the tags transversely of the tape.

8. A device `according to claim 5 in which said pressure applying meanscomprises a helical compression spring adapted to be interposed betweensaid bottom wall and a stack of tags disposed within the tag chamber.

9. A device according to claim 5 in which `said abutment means comprisespaced protuberances disposed to engage the edges of tags to bow samelongitudinally of the tape.

10. A device for successively applying individual tags to lengths ofadhesive tape coincident with separation of the lengths of .tape from adispensing roll of a continuous strip of such tape, including a framecomprising, in relatively 'fixed relation, means for rotatively mountingsaid roll of tape and a plate providing a 4tape-supporting platform incontact with one face of which tape dispensed from said roll is drawnand by mvhich it is supported in predetermined tixed planar relation tothe axis of rotation of said roll, said plate having a tape severingedge remote from said roll and being provided with an opening of an areasubstantially commensurate with the area of the individual tags, saidopening being disposed between said edge and roll, and means forsuccessively presenting at the opposite face of said plate, in registerwith said opening, individual tags from a stack of same in position foradhesive engagement by the tape supported by said plate, including amagazine arranged between the tape severing edge and the tape mountingmeans for positioning said stack of tags in uniform arrangement withrespect to said opening, means for normally urging the stack of tagstowards the opposite face of the plate, and abutment means at saidopening and overlying edge portions of said tags for successivelyengaging and normally arresting said tags, whereby the tags in saidstack successively presented at said opening will be engaged by andadhesively united to those portions of the .tape successively positionedon the `cutting plate at said opening.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,158,787 Coates Nov. 2, 1915 2,307,406 Howard Ian. 5, 1943 2,435,129Castel Ian. 27, 1948 2,555,747 Iosselyn Ian. 5, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS698,117 Great Britain Oct. 7, 1953

